


A Soul for A Soul

by badwolf2991



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, F/M, like major spoilers, seriously don't read if you haven't watched it yet, that's all you get
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-28
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2020-02-08 17:16:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18627691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badwolf2991/pseuds/badwolf2991
Summary: Can't even give you a summary it is so spoiler-y. A fix it for a certain scene at the end.





	A Soul for A Soul

It was the smart thing to do. To volunteer to return the stones to their correct spots in history. So with the six stones locked in a box for safekeeping during transport, I geared up to make this trip. Banner had said that it would take me as long as necessary, but when I return it would have only been five seconds.

I'm not sure if I unconsciously picked the order, or if the Stones dictated it themselves, but I found myself in New York City first. And promptly had to duck as a car was thrown in my direction. A quick glance around revealed I wasn't far from the Ancient One, so it looked like the Time Stone was up first. I watched as Banner promised to return the Stone at the moment it was to be taken, and then watched him vanish from sight with the glowing gem. I stepped forward into the view of the Ancient One, and pulled the Time Stone from the case.

"He may not be the one returning it, but he kept his promise." A knowing smile filled her face as the green glow illuminated the rooftop as it floated its way to the Eye of Agamotto. "Thank you. For keeping your word." Without even looking, she deflected debris away, and returned to protecting what she could against the Chitauri.

Another jump and I found myself on what I assumed to be Asgard. Thankfully I was hidden behind a pillar- was it a column here?- when a small army of guards rushed by chasing a streak of gray. Yep, that was Rocket. Inching in the opposite direction, I found my way to the one door that was left ajar. Peering in, I found Doctor Jane Foster collapsed on the floor. I pulled the Reality Stone from the case as I entered the luxurious room, and watched as it crumbled into a finely grated pile of red dust, before it slowly reentered Jane's body. I figured I couldn't just leave her on the floor like that, so I gently picked her up and placed her back on the couch-like piece of furniture.

One more hop found myself back in New York City. This one was going to be tricky. Between the battle I had with myself- jeez, I was going to need therapy after that mess- and having to return the briefcase with the Mind Stone in it to Sitwell was going to be more difficult. I really hoped that I wasn't going to have to fight myself again to get the scepter back, but I was preparing for the worst at this point.

It turned out easier that expected. I guess I should have taken into account that the me from 48 hours ago would have expected to see someone taking the scepter back so that it was in its correct place in history. Watching the yellow glow shift to blue as it settled into the scepter, I watched as my recent past self vanished, and I headed to someplace I could drop this off that Sitwell would find it. If I didn't have to deal with him again that would be great. 

Three down, three to go. Seconds later, I found myself on what had to be Morag. Oddly enough, it had a purple tint to it. I watched as past Peter Quill was knocked unconscious-what is it with teammates knocking people unconscious!- and Nebula handed over the Orb to Rhodey. They soon disappeared from view and I approached the unconscious Quill. The purple glow of the Power Stone shifted until it looked like the Orb again, and I left it close enough that Quill would find it when he woke again.

One more jump found myself behind a small cluster of rocks, and I could see as Romanoff and Barton made their way to the very top. And then,

"Welcome, Natasha, daughter of Ivan. Welcome, Clint, son of Edith." That voice. Sure enough, there was Johann Schmidt, red faced and all. It took all my self-control not to launch myself from where I was hidden. I felt my heart sink as I realized what was about to happen. I had been warned that I couldn't change anything that had happened; I couldn't stop this. I had to look away as Nat and Barton fought over who would die for the Stone. Once Barton was out of view, I stepped into view.

"You said a soul for a soul? If I return it, will she come back?" I hated the way my voice trembled with emotion, but after everything, _he_ was behind a lot of the pain I had experienced. I watched his head tilted as if pondering the question. "Can you bring her back when I return the Soul Stone?"

He let out a laugh that could only be described as sinister. "It's not that simple, boy." A menacing grin broke out on his face. "You must lose that which you love."

I didn't really realize what happened. I jumped to the 70's, when Tony managed to grab the Tesseract, the Space Stone, from the SHIELD headquarters. I quickly found the spot that Tony took it from, and replaced it. Bolting from the room, I hoped this idea would work. I jumped. But not back to Vormir. Not just yet.

I found myself in a small house, and when I turned, I found a gun pointed at my head. Holding the gun was Peggy. When she realized it was me, she clicked the safety before dropping the gun to envelope me in a hug. The once great love of my life, in front of me. I hugged her back, a fierce feeling of being overwhelmed washing over me. I had to clear my throat multiple times before I could speak. "Can we sit down? I need to talk to you?"

So we sat there, as I explained as much as I could without causing the world to implode because of some kind of paradox. How I wanted her to be happy, and that when I left, she would be. But I wanted that dance we never got. She stood, tears in her eyes, and walked to the record player. She put on something slow, and held her hand out. She hadn't said a word, which I was grateful for, for if she said anything I would have broke down crying. She let me put my arms around her, holding her close as the music filled the room. And for that moment, everything was perfect. The song slowly winded down, and she tilted her head up.

"Just one kiss. Please. Before you go." How could I not? I bent that tiny gap forward, pressing my lips gently to her ruby red ones. It was short, but tender. She took a step back and as I vanished, I saw tears escape from the corner of her eye.

I landed back on Vormir, not even a second from when I had left. I had shut my eyes at some point. I felt the tear leak down at the lingering touch of Peggy's lips. I held the Soul Stone out to the Red Skull. I could feel the Stone lift from my hand, returning to its hiding place. I expected that. What I wasn't expecting was the chuckle that slipped from him. "I guess the Stone grants your wish."

My eyes flew open. Right in front of me, standing right in front of me looking confused, was Natasha. I took the one step between us and pulled her into a hug.

"What happened?" Her voice was raspy, like she had been screaming for hours. "Did it not work?"

"It worked." The words escaped with the barest of exhales. Before I could say anything else, Schmidt spoke again.

"However, there are conditions it appears. You may not return to your proper timeline. She died. To bring her back would be a paradox of paradoxes. To stay here, well, that would not be wise. But you're smart, annoyingly so. I imagine you can figure out what to do." And with that, he turned and walked away, disappearing into nothing.

It was that moment that I realized that love happens. Even when you least expect it. Yes, Peggy had been my first love. An untested love. And those hold until put to rest. But in Natasha I had found something deeper. A friendship that couldn't be broken. She had saved my back and I had saved hers. We may not have always seen eye to eye, but she was a solid foundation to get my head screwed on straight. She helped after the Battle of New York, with the panic attacks I hid from everyone else. She helped me adjust to the twenty-first century, albeit in a somewhat teasing manner. And somewhere along the way, that friendship bloomed. I remember the crushed feeling when Barton told us that Nat didn't make it. Like a part of myself had died too.  It was a gamble, using the untested love of a first love. Because being untested meant that everything could have gone right. Untested meant that we would never know if everything went to hell in a hand basket. The idea of losing that potential, was letting go of something I loved.

I felt Nat pull away, and unable to handle it anymore, I kissed her. I felt her immediate shock, but she melted into the kiss. The kiss with Peggy had been sweet. A promise. This kiss burned with passion, with admiration. I pulled away this time, realizing exactly what I had done. "I'm sorry, I should have asked first." I could feel my face flame with embarrassment.

"How about we get out of here and you tell me everything I missed?" She smirked that damn smirk.

"That sounds nice."

* * *

"I decided to live that life Tony talked about." 

"Want to tell me about her?"

I just smiled.


End file.
